Arc of the Rising Sun
by Savage Sonnet
Summary: She barely escaped the caves of the Strigoi with Dimitri. Now Rose has to deal with a new character at the Academy; one that will question everything she's ever learned about Strigoi, and make her world more vulnerable than ever. AU & OC
1. A Dark Wall

**Well, hello hello. I ish Meg. X3 And I'm here with a new story! I just recently finished reading Shadow Kiss, and _needed _to write a fanfic about Vampire Academy. XD So here it is.**

**The story starts up as Rose and the rest of the team are escaping the Strigoi caves. As you will soon see, I have twisted the story. Rose's POV, just like the books. Sorry in advance if anyone is ooc. D: Lemme know in your review if someone is acting funkeh. XD**

**Rated T for language, bloody fight scenes, and romance.**

**~Meg**

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I was running—running harder than I ever had in my life. All those months of conditioning with Dimitri had paid off, and now I was sprinting through the caves like my life depended on it—because it did. Around me were the looming walls of the cave, creating a deadly arc above my head. My mother and several other Guardians were running ahead of me, and behind me I knew Dimitri was there.

The high-pitched, feminine scream is what made me turn. I saw Celeste, grappling with a Strigoi. In an instant, the Strigoi had her in a headlock and, with devastating speed, bit down hard into her neck. Blood splattered everywhere, making my heart thump even faster. A strong, sturdy hand pushed against my back in an effort to keep me moving. The owner of said hand turned out to be Dimitri, I discovered, as I looked up at him.

Oh, God, he was so handsome. Even with a bruised jaw and a dried line of blood running down the side of his face, he looked like some kind of gorgeous, lethal angel. I remembered the night before, and a small feathery sensation settled into my stomach. Mentally shaking myself, I concentrated on the task at hand. I would have time later to daydream about that night, but there was the small matter of making it out of this place alive, first.

I gulped and gave a small nod as I continued to run, eyes focused on that small ray of light at the end. I set my very soul and essence on that light; my mind thinned out until all I could see and all I could think about was that small beam of hope. Once we were out of there, it would be home free. So many lives would be lost, and countless more saved, but I wasn't going to be the one to get stuck and hold everyone back.

So with the last reserves of my energy I bolted even faster, passing by my mother and ignoring another shriek from only a few yards behind me. The Strigoi were advancing, and from what I could hear, they weren't that far behind.

I gave one final push and gasped with relief as I burst out into the light. I never thought that I would love the sun as much as I did right then. Gasping, I took a greedy gulp of oxygen and slowed down. I turned to face the people who had made it out. There were several of us; Dimitri and my mother included. My heart ached with joy that the two of them had made it out. Sure, I wasn't very close with my mother, but I would never wish a death at the hands of a Strigoi on her. I had gotten over that violent phase, anyways.

And Dimitri. I took this moment of relief to stare at him, the way he stood so strong, emitting power and grace, how calm and serene he was in the wake of such a terrible battle, how the fading sun danced on—wait. Crap, the _fading _sun.

My eyes slid over to the entrance of the cave where the Strigoi had appeared, waiting hungrily in the safety of the darkness. Their eyes glinted, and some of them bared their fangs, their mouths curled up in a dangerous snarl. Without another moment's hesitation, my mother took reins of the situation.

"Run! We can still get ahead of them! Back to the Academy!" she shouted, her voice commanding and in control. She seemed surprisingly calm in all this, and a part of me was almost jealous of her ability to stay cool.

Obeying orders, I turned sharply back towards the forest. The few moments' rest had refueled me more than I had thought it would. I tore through the forest alongside the rest of the Guardians, ignoring the sore ache in my body_. I'll have time for that later,_ I thought as I jumped over a fallen branch. I could sense Dimitri come up beside me. Taking a chance, I glanced at him through my veil of dark hair that had come loose from its ponytail. Dimitri glanced briefly down at me, and I swore I saw the hint of a smile grace his lips.

Bringing my concentration back to the mission, I brought my head back to look straight ahead of me.

It felt like only minutes had passed when we arrived at the front gates of the Academy. The sun was just about to dip beneath the horizon, casting orange and red rays down onto the earth. As I slowed to a jog and passed through the safety of the wards, I noticed that the rest of the Guardians, Moroi, and former captives had only beaten us by a minute or two.

I spotted Christian and Eddie in the group, and was able to let my heart settle down a little. Although I hadn't been aware of it consciously, I had been so worried about them. Eddie looked a little shaken, and Christian looked absolutely swamped in exhaustion, but the two guys appeared to be in pretty good condition overall.

Letting a somewhat relieved sigh escape my lips, I came to a complete stop and rolled my shoulders. I glanced around as the medical staff came pouring out of the nearby buildings, all sorts of medical supplies in hand. I also caught sight of Lissa and Adrian in the group. The school had decided that in the wake of this battle, it wasn't worth it to keep spirit a secret when so many lives could be saved. Through the bond, I could sense a burning relief and overpowering happiness when Lissa saw Christian. A small part of me was a little upset she hadn't seen me, but I didn't blame her. After all, there had been a huge chance neither Christian nor myself would make it back alive. Lissa must've been worried sick; I had been too preoccupied with the battle to notice anything through the bond.

Everywhere around me were anxious Guardians and Moroi, some having escaped with only minor wounds, while others weren't as fortunate. You would think that the air would be filled with din; yelling, screaming, sobbing... But it was unnaturally calm except for the occasional relieved friend or ally crying or the small groans of pain as someone's wound was mended.

I jogged over to where Christian and Lissa stood hugging in silence. Tears fell from behind Lissa's eyelids, her usually pale cheeks rosy with emotion. When she opened her eyes and saw me, a huge smile of joy stretched across her face, unintentionally revealing her fangs. I felt another pang of relief through the bond as she let go of Christian and ran to me.

"Oh, my God, Rose! You're alive!" she squeaked, her voice cracking slightly. She wrapped her arms around me in a tight embrace, which I returned with a little less force. I was exhausted and tired as it was, but I was so glad to see my best friend again. Lissa looked up at me, her jade green eyes wide with awe and liberation from the constant worrying that had no doubt been abusing her since we had left.

'I'm go glad you didn't..." she trailed off, not wanting to finish her own sentence. I managed a small smile and hugged her a little tighter.

"You really think I'd let some stupid Strigoi get the best of me?" I asked rhetorically, my smile widening. Lissa gave a little smile of her own and released me. She turned to Christian and wrapped her arms around his neck, planting a kiss on his lips. He murmured something I couldn't hear, making her smile even more.

"Hey, Lissa," I started. She looked over at me, somewhat surprised I had interrupted she and Christian's 'moment'. I gave her a smirk and raised my eyebrows.

"Aren't you supposed to be playing Superman and healing everyone?" I asked, yet another rhetorical question. Lissa blinked and then pulled away from Christian abruptly.

"Oh, my gosh!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide. I could sense a twinge of guilt through the bond. She looked at Christian and placed a gentle hand on his cheek. The bruises and scrapes that had soiled his face disappeared almost immediately as Lissa closed her eyes. A sense of overwhelming bliss and life coursed through me; I was feeling what she was feeling as she healed Christian's minor wounds.

Lissa removed her hand. Christian flashed her a toothy smile, his eyes softening in a way only Lissa could make them. Lissa returned the smile and then turned to Eddie, who had remained silent throughout. After healing his broken wrist, she took the few steps over to me. Eddie and Christian were quickly ushered away by a nurse, asking for their names and some other pieces of useless information.

"I'll see you later," Christian said to Lissa as he walked off, winking at her; this was received by Lissa's flushing cheeks and tiny smile. Eddie simply waved at her and I as he followed Christian and the nurse, managing a grin. I waved back with an amused smirk.

As Lissa turned and approached me, I glanced down at my left arm. I had twisted it during a brawl with a brunette Strigoi, whom I had promptly staked afterwards.

Lissa placed her hands on my arm, having noticing my averted gaze towards the injury. I looked back at her and smiled contentedly as I felt the wonderful ecstasy run through my veins once more. The dull ache coming from my arm faded away, leaving a refreshed and energized sensation where the injury had been.

"Thanks, Liss," I told her as she took her hands back. She then took a scrunchie off her wrist and handed it to me.

"The wind-blown look looks good on you, but I have a feeling you might want this," she said softly, giving a little smile again. I raised my eyebrows slightly while returning the smile. I took the scrunchie gratefully and started to put my thick, dark hair up in another ponytail.

"I know, don't I look simply marvelous?" I drawled comically as I finished with my hair. Lissa grinned and had started to walk off to attend to the wounded when a voice sounded from behind me.

"D'ya mind taking care of this for me?" asked an oddly bubbly, feminine voice. I turned to see a beautiful young woman, probably in her early twenties, with piercing emerald green eyes. Unlike Lissa's, these eyes were darker and twinkling with a hyped, nearly childish, gleam. Dark, raven-colored hair framed her face, almost feather-like as it cascaded down her shoulders in small waves. The strange thing was that she barely reached over five feet. The only way I had been able to guess her age was by her high cheekbones and heart-shaped face, proving that she had indeed reached a mature age. She was holding out a bloodied arm, an ugly gash running across the inside of her forearm.

Lissa turned as well and gave the woman one of her ever-famous charismatic smiles.

"Of course," she said politely as she strode over to the woman. The raven-haired woman smiled, showing off her translucent white fangs.

"Thank you," she said brightly as Lissa reached her. "My name is Skylar, by the way," she added with another smile. I eyed Skylar somewhat warily, her obvious glee that stood out against the morbid scene creeping me out a little. Who could be so... So _peppy_ at a time like this? Skylar's attire wasn't exactly, well, normal either. With silver flats, dark jean shorts, and indigo designer t-shirt, she didn't exactly look like she had just come out of a battle. That is, except for the obvious arm gash and missing silver hoop earring.

"My name is Lissa," Lissa greeted lightly as she placed her hand gingerly on Skylar's ugly gash. I could feel the beautiful pulsation begin to make its way to me when Skylar screamed. A disgustingly wet, snake-y feeling slithered through my core, followed by a solid wall of rage. I opened my eyes that I didn't know had been closed and stared at her. The young woman's face was wrenched in agony, and her arm was oozing even more blood. The scarlet liquid gushed from her arm, rolling down her fair, fair skin and falling to the ground.

"Wha-?" Skylar squeaked to an equally astonished Lissa. I could sense confusion, horrification, and an immense sense of guilt rush through the bond. Lissa blinked and stared at the wound.

"I-I don't know what happened!" she nearly yelled, her jade green eyes wide with shock. She looked up at Skylar. "Oh, my gosh, I am _so _sorry." And she was. I could sense it through our bond.

I, too, stared in sickly wonder as Skylar's wound worsened. Lissa quickly removed her hands, and as she did, the flow of blood slowed and Skylar's face relaxed from the relief of pain. She panted slightly and gulped.

"Did you, like, mess up or something?" Skylar asked hesitantly as she gingerly brushed her fingers across her wound. Lissa shook her head.

"I-I don't think it works like that," she said slowly, although I could sense her uncertainty. I looked sharply at Skylar.

"What the hell did you do?" I asked hotly, holding off an angry snarl. Skylar looked at me in shock, her eyes seeming to glaze over with naïve light. For some reason, I felt as if she were to blame for the freakish incident. Why had Lissa's healing failed? Even worse, why had it backfired and made Skylar's wound bleed even more? It didn't make any sense; spirit was meant to heal, not to harm.

"Rose, it's not her fault!" Lissa said sharply, although I could tell she was only talking like that because she was confused. "I-I must've done something wrong, or something. I'm sorry," she added to Skylar, putting her fists against her chest in apology. Skylar was about to say something when a nurse came up to them.

"Mrs., please come with me. That wound can't wait," she said in short, clipped syllables when she noticed the new severity of Skylar's wound. Without waiting for a response, she turned around and headed towards where many other nurses were gathered around the medical station. Skylar blinked before nodding.

"Ah, yes. Thank you, ma'am," she said quickly, still eyeing Lissa skeptically. She gave the two of us a curt nod before turning, her raven feather hair swishing as she moved. I was about to yell after her when Lissa placed her hand on my shoulder.

"Just leave it, Rose," she said quietly, although her voice quavered. I bit my tongue and looked at her, studying her crestfallen features.

"What happened, Lissa? What did you do differently?" I asked, confusion pricking at me. This had never happened before, and from what I knew, it wasn't supposed to happen at all. Unless something was going on with Lissa's powers...?

"I don't know. Everything was perfectly normal, just like when I healed you and everyone else before that," she said slowly. "Then when I tried to fix her arm, I just... I don't know. It was like something kind of like, mentally shoved me. And it was just so, so _dark_. And angry. It was as if whatever it was didn't want me helping her."

I stared at Lissa, the gears in my head struggling to turn. Since when could something repel spirit's healing nature?


	2. Postponing My Life

While I was busy gaping like an idiot, some Guardian had come over and asked for Lissa to heal his shoulder wound. I blinked the surprise off and watched as Lissa hesitantly placed a ginger hand on his shoulder. I half expected the man to begin screaming in pain, writhing out of her grasp and for his shoulder to explode in a spray of crimson.

But instead, I felt the soothing sensation of warmth and life flow through me, brought into my veins via our bond. I saw the wound close up as Lissa closed her eyes in concentration. I could tell there was a sense of wanting to redeem her self, and to prove that nothing was amiss with her powers. Once the wound was fully healed, Lissa removed her hand and gave the man a polite smile.

"Thank you, Miss. You truly are a miracle worker," he said with almost some kind of wonder in his baritone voice. Actually, upon further inspection, he was pretty handsome. He had dark hazel eyes to rival shaggy dirty blond hair, and powerful muscles beneath a tight t-shirt. But his looks were definitely no match for Dimitri, I thought with an inner grin.

Lissa gave him a small nod and a "thank you" as the Guardian walked off. She turned to me.

"See? Nothing happened when I healed him," she said flatly. Yet mingling amongst the depths of her jade green eyes was a flash of uncertainty and naïve hope. I bit my lip, my mind trying to work out what was happening.

Obviously, something was up with this Skylar girl. With everyone else, Lissa's healing powers worked fine. But with her... I remembered the horrible feeling Lissa's attempted healing had given off. At first, pure bliss, but only to be followed by that nauseating feeling of dread and utter fury. Though, the more I tried to make sense of the situation, the more my understanding of it all seemed to drift out of reach. I furrowed my brow and huffed.

"It must be something Skylar did," I said stubbornly. No way was I going to freak Lissa out with thoughts that _she _was to blame for what had happened. I would rather make her come to false conclusions than to have her have a mental breakdown.

"Maybe..." Lissa said slowly, now fumbling awkwardly with her hands. She's really freaked, I noted subconsciously. I tried to reassure her by giving her a soft nudge in the shoulder.

"Look, I'm sure it was just some—weird phenomenon," I caught myself even as I spoke. "I don't think you should worry about it."

Lissa looked about to deny that notion when a few more Guardians approached her, probably about to ask for healing. She must have realized this, too, because she cast me a doubtful glance before turning to help the injured.

I wrenched my jaw to the side, holding off adding something to my vague explanation. Sighing in defeat, I left my best friend to her duty and walked off towards the dining hall. An uncomfortable ache had settled into my stomach from hunger. All that Strigoi ass-kicking had really used up my energy reserves.

That thought is probably what had distracted me when I bumped face first into, none other than, Adrian. I stepped back and looked up at his smirking face.

"Well, fancy meeting you here, little dhampir," he said coolly, one of his eyebrows raised. I scowled. He let out a low, rumbling laugh as he lit one of his ever-famous cigarettes, bringing it to his lips as the laughing ceased.

"Yeah, right," I mumbled. I started to stalk off.

"So, I saw one of Lissa's pretty patients throwing a fit." Adrian was now looking pointedly at me, with a wolfish grin across his face and his free hand shoved into his coat pocket. I looked sharply at him.

"Oh, what? Now you're interested in other woman?" I asked sarcastically, turning only my upper body to face him. Adrian laughed lightly. He took another puff from his cigarette.

"Nah, you're the only one for me," he said simply, leaning towards me slightly. I held back an angry retort.

"But really. What happened there?" Adrian was now sliding around me in an attempt to face me head-on. His usual sly nature had melted away to what seemed like simple curiosity. I crossed my arms and sighed; he wasn't going to go away. And in a way, I felt like he had the right to know. After all, Lissa wasn't the only one blessed with spirit. For all I knew, Adrian was prone to the incident that had happened earlier, too.

"Are you going to listen and not interrupt me?" I asked simply, staring him in the eyes. Adrian shrugged.

"Sure."

"I think there might be something wrong with spirit's healing powers."

Adrian cocked an eyebrow, but I was pretty sure he was inwardly interested. "Oh?"

I filled him in on what happened with Skylar and Lissa, including that sick feeling that had overpowered us when Lissa had tried to heal the wound. Adrian listened intently, his eyes slightly narrowed as he took it all in. Occasionally, he would puff on his cigarette in thought.

"So..." he started slowly, "you think that Skylar might have done something to screw with Lissa's spirit?"

I shrugged. "I honestly don't know, but whatever she did, or made spirit do, it wasn't natural. It just felt... Wrong."

Adrian pursed his lips. "Well, I don't know what to tell you, little dhampir." I scowled at the nickname and his statement. He went on.

"But I'll look into it." Adrian began to walk off, waving back lazily without looking at me.

"Good-bye to you, too," I mumbled irritably. I ambled off toward the dining hall, much to my empty stomach's delight. How Adrian was going to 'look into it' I wasn't sure, but I didn't question him. He had pulled through with some useful findings in the past, and hopefully this time he would do the same. Although, a part of me wasn't so keen on relying on anyone else but myself. But as much as I wanted to leave Lissa and Adrian out of it, I couldn't. After all, spirit was their element, not mine.

I walked into the dining hall to see freshly healed Guardians and Moroi eating their meals, silent for the most part. A ghostly chill hung in the air from the wake of the battle. Even though we had managed to retrieve the captives with minor losses, it was still saddening to know that there _were _losses. Not to mention the killings from the original invasion, too.

Immediately smelling fish, I slowly got into the food line. I wasn't a big fan of fishy stuff, but any food in my stomach was good enough for me at the moment.

Once I had my tray, I slid over to where Eddie and Christian were sitting in silence.

"Yo," I greeted, somewhat softly, as I sat down beside Eddie and across from Christian. The two guys looked up at my approach. Eddie waved at me and mumbled something through a mouthful of food while Christian gave me a small nod.

I briefly considered telling the guys about Lissa's incident, but then thought better of it. I didn't want word to spread that something was up with spirit, and possibly Skylar. Tarnishing a random Guardian's reputation would probably get me in some kind of trouble with Kirova, anyways. So instead I ate my fish in silence, pushing the vegetables around my plate in thought.

"You're awfully quiet," Christian noted flatly. I looked up at him.

"Yeah? Well, so are all these other zombies." I gestured around the room with my head. "You don't seem so talkative either, hotshot."

Christian scowled. I grinned at him. Eddie remained quiet, so I glanced sideways at him. He was still a little paler than usual, considering the Strigoi had fed from him. But other than that, he seemed fine.

"So, how—?" But my voice was cut off as a shriller voice rang throughout the room via microphone. I looked up.

"All those healthy enough to attend, please gather in the auditorium immediately for a crucial announcement. Thank you." The voice, no doubt belonging to Kirova, clicked off.

I paused before blinking and looking down at my half-eaten meal. I sighed.

"Well, you heard the old lady," I mumbled mostly to myself as I stood up. I disposed of my tray and didn't bother to see if either Eddie or Christian had followed me. Before I made my way over to the gym, though, I dropped by the dorms to get a change of clothes. As much as I loved ripped, bloodied jackets, I felt that an outfit change would be appropriate.

After quickly changing into some dark jeans and a maroon hoodie, I sauntered over to the gym amongst the crowd. Despite Kirova's attempts to let the injured rest, those stubborn enough to come had made their way into the swarm of people headed for the announcement. I spotted Dimitri amongst them and felt the corners of my mouth quirk up in the slightest hint of a smile. Feeling my gaze, Dimitri looked over at me from across the way. He didn't smile back, obviously, to keep people from questioning the exchange, but the small dip of his chin let me know he acknowledged me.

The crowd pulled me into the gym like a rapid current, leaving me no choice but to climb up the bleachers. I saw Lissa and Christian sitting side by side, their heads ducked close together as they whispered. I had a pretty good idea of what she was telling him.

"Oh, hey, Rose," Lissa greeted as she saw my approach. She lifted her head to a normal level and smiled at me. I returned the gesture and sat on her other side, opposite of Christian. He had greeted me with a simple "hey". Not that I blamed him. I'd been pretty moody lately, and for good reason. When people thought you belonged in a mental hospital because you were seeing ghosts, life wasn't so dandy and filled with rainbows and gumdrops.

I leaned back against the wall, considering we were on the highest bench. Already, I was positive I knew what this meeting was about. Letting us know about the number of deaths, reports on how many captives were retrieved, and all that gory jazz. What I didn't expect was what Kirova was really going to say.

The old woman made her way slowly up to the microphone, trailed by two Guardians. None of which I recognized. I did, however, notice two Guardians standing against the wall; Dimitri and my mother. My eyes scanned the edges of the room for Skylar, but I didn't see the raven-haired woman anywhere. I dropped my gaze to the bleachers and finally saw her in one of the bottom rows. She wasn't dressed like the rest of the Guardians. That is to say, she was decked out in a pale lavender sundress and high-heeled sandals. Not exactly the proper attire for a Guardian. Although, the ace bandages wrapped around her left arm fit the role. Several questions began to form in my mind, but my thought process was shattered when Kirova spoke.

"Ahem." The entire gym silenced after that single word. Kirova's bat-like gaze briefly swept over the audience.

"The previous... events have been difficult. Repairs must be made, and the wounded must be tended to. In the wake of this, the faculty has decided upon something to help ease the pressure on students." She paused.

"The finals will be held off until further notice. We ask that you all assist in aiding the Academy in helping restore its former glory." I blinked and stared at the old woman in angry shock. How could she postpone the finals?! The rest of the world wasn't going to wait around while we rebuilt the Academy. What was the point of waiting to graduate?!

A lot of people around me seemed to agree, shifting in their seats and casting doubtful glances at one another. But no one appeared as if they would protest this; they simply listened to what their head mistress had to say.

I, on the other hand, felt rage bubble inside me. If I was going to become Lissa's Guardian, I couldn't waste my time sitting around! The Strigoi, although unlikely, could attack again before graduation. If we could graduate before their next attack, then the Academy would have dozens more fully trained Guardians to rely on, plus more frequently guarded Moroi to boot. What was the point of dragging the process out?

My fists were tightly clenched, my knuckles turning white with the effort. Lissa placed a delicate hand over one of my fists and looked at my face. I glanced sideways at her. Her features were soft and pleading. She mouthed silently, 'don't'. Scowling, I looked away from her and back at Kirova. I knew Lissa was right; mouthing off and causing a scene wouldn't do any good. But the idea still satisfied my rage, so instead of standing up and protesting, I daydreamed about socking the old lady in the face and smacking some sense into her. Yeah. It helped, a little.

"So, without further preamble, I announce the postponing of the senior class graduation."


	3. Not Your Typical ?

**Sorry for the late update, guys. 'Twas on vacation. Next chapter should be up within the next few days. Thanks for all your reviews; keep 'em coming! Enjoy. ~Meg**

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I had to swallow my rage for the remainder of the announcement. Listening to the old bat drone on and on about the repairs needed to be made on the school was torture. Of course I actually _did _listen to what Kirova had to say, but I didn't wear a smile during any of it. Because, honestly, who wants to know when the next shipment of glass is supposed to come in, or how many doors need to be replaced. Not Rose Hathaway.

In the middle of the announcement, I noticed Skylar stand up and walk calmly out of the gym. No Guardian or teacher stopped her. I was about to stand up and go after her when Lissa abruptly grabbed my wrist. I glanced at her.

"Leave it, Rose," she whispered softly. I frowned, but stayed put.

When she finally finished her epic speech, Kirova took a step away from the podium.

"That will be all for now. Thank you for you cooperation."

The audience stayed silent for a few moments before bursting into, what I thought of as, senseless chatter.

Beside me, Lissa's lips were curled up in the slightest hint of a pout, although it disappeared as quickly as I caught sight of it. Christian, on the other hand, made no attempt to hide his obvious annoyance.

"Well, this is screwed up," he glowered as the three of us stood up. "Not to mention completely pointless," he added tartly.

I looked at him pointedly. "Wow. For once I agree with you." Christian gave a humorless smirk as he fell into step beside Lissa, the three of us making our way down the bleacher stairs.

"Well, I'm sure they're not going to hold it off _that _long," Lissa said slowly. Her attempts to brighten the mood were a nice effort, but didn't help. As I walked down the steps, I tuned out Christian and Lissa's conversation. I scanned the crowd for a familiar face, one I knew wouldn't completely blow up at me for my 'irrational thinking'. I hopped off the last two steps and strode over to where a shadowed figure stood, near the corner of the room. I think he saw me before I even said anything.

"Dimitri—"

"I know, Rose. I know," Dimitri interrupted, his muscles less tense after standing watch during the announcement. He was looking down at me as I glowered, his dark eyes hard but not completely devoid of emotion or empathy.

I scowled again. "But it's totally—"

"Unfair?" he offered. I bit the inside of my mouth. I always knew we were alike, but I never thought Dimitri and I would be the kind of couple to finish each other's sentences. In a way, it was both cute and creepy.

I sensed Lissa come up behind me. I wondered where Christian went, but I didn't turn to greet her and ask her that. Instead, I continued to face Dimitri.

"Not like that. It's just; it's going to throw off everybody's plans for college. Not to mention family celebrations and all that crap."

"I'm quite sure it screwed up people's plans when they were killed by Strigoi." I winced. Ouch. Talk about a low blow, even for Dimitri. I could sense Lissa's growing apprehension.

"I think what Rose is trying to say," Lissa helped as she came up beside me, "is that postponing graduation is going to put a strain on all the current Guardians and Moroi. If we were to graduate on schedule, then it would help ease the pressure by bringing in more fully-trained Guardians, and also give the Moroi better protection." Lissa paused. "But, personally, I see where Kirova's logic is coming from. We need to make sure the grounds are secure before launching any fake Strigoi attacks."

Dimitri looked at Lissa and gave a small nod. "Your reasoning is well proven, Miss Dragomir." I sensed a small glow of delight at Dimitri's approval coming from Lissa. Lissa saw Dimitri as the 'god-like Guardian' and thought of him as a great figure, while I saw him as the handsome, sweet guy from the night before.

Then Dimitri looked at me. "And although I do agree with some of your points, there isn't anything I can do. Headmistress Kirova runs the Academy, not me."

I huffed a little and crossed my arms, assuming the stubborn Rose stance. "But still. It's going to do more harm than help." Dimitri gave a little sigh, but my mind had drifted away at my own statement. I silently fought with myself over whether or not I should ask him something. I finally gave in.

"By the way," I started, "do you know any Guardian here named Skylar?" I felt a burst of unease coming from Lissa, but I gave her a small eye glance to tell her not to worry. Of course, Dimitri caught the exchange, but didn't say anything to that. His eyes took on a somewhat curious appearance.

"No, I don't," he said slowly. I felt my heart sink. The one time I ask, the ever-popular and all-knowing Dimitri doesn't know the person I'm looking for. Figures.

"Why do you ask?" I was about to scramble for a vague answer when someone saved me.

"You mean Vincenetti, Skylar?" I turned ninety degrees, as did Lissa, to face my mother. She had apparently heard my question and decided to waltz in and answer it personally. Dimitri gave her a polite nod of greeting, which she returned.

"With black hair and green eyes?" Lissa asked. My mother nodded.

"That's her. Been a while since I've seen her, actually. She was a senior when I last ran into her." Her eyes spaced out for a moment before snapping back into focus.

"Again, why do you ask?" Dimitri questioned, his eyes moving from my mother up to me. Lissa, thank God, saved me.

"Oh, we were just wondering. After all, I love her line of clothing. Rire Chez Vie is one of my favorites." I couldn't help but snap my head to look at Lissa. The woman had her own line of clothing?! Since when does that fit into her Guardian schedule?

"Ah, yes," my mother said flatly. Her voice held a little bit of criticism. "I suppose her," she paused, "_unique_ status gives her the extra time for that."

Now my head snapped to my mother. Lissa looked at her as well, but in a less violent fashion. Curiosity nearly exploded through our bond.

"What do you mean, 'status'?" I asked, a little too sharply, I supposed. My mother sighed in exasperation and appeared to be fighting off an eye roll. Her voice was taut.

"Vincenetti isn't exactly a Guardian, Rose."


End file.
